“You know, my friend Barbara knows a girl who done solo travel, and she said it felt really unsafe. Are you sure it’s safe?”
I hope like hell that it’s not safe. Safe is a boring word. Going on holiday and playing it “safe” sounds like my idea of hell.
I don’t want “safe.”
Every day I got to work in a “safe” neighbourhood. I drink in “safe” bars, and I eat lunch at “safe” cafes.
No matter what part of suburbia I am in, it’s safe to say (heh gettit?). The illusion of being safe is always present.
However, if I choose to solo travel to a destination that is slightly off the beaten path or that has a different way of life to mine, suddenly, people stress out about the safety of it all.
Sure, in some countries they drive erratically. The building standards aren’t quite like they are at home. Maybe the food is cooked on the side of the street. Maybe the beer is poured straight from an open vat (looking at you Hanoi, Vietnam!). That’s all part of travelling and experiencing different worlds.
The perceived safety in suburbia is high. We all know the throw-around statistic that starts like: ” You are more likely to get hit by a bus than {insert crazy adventurous action} “. And I like to think it’s not true.
110 countries down. I have yet to have suffered any of the horrific travel fates my mother’s neighbour warned me about. Touchwood.
“What about the men? Aren’t they dangerous? Don’t solo travel. Maybe you should travel with a guy so you don’t get harassed?”
I don’t know… Part of travelling on my own as a woman means I get to control who I hang out with on any given night. Having a man travel with me for the sheer sake of not getting harassed by other men seems silly.
For one, often the local men are lovely and polite. Most of the time they are just trying to practise their English or make friends. And also, the other male travellers are usually pretty decent guys too.
Worldwide travellers tend to be like-minded, so I’m happy to share a beer or 6 with them.
I don’t believe I am any more unsafe in the company of men while travelling. Not as opposed to those who accompany me in my day-to-day life back home. I certainly don’t need a man to hold my hand while I cross borders or negotiate traffic.
“Won’t you be lonely? How will you make friends?”
Nope, not at a bar, at a bus stop, in an art gallery, on a day trip, while riding a local boat… Making friends is easy when you ride solo.
Some of the greatest friends I have met while travelling, I have made while alone.
There is no sure-fire way or place to meet these magical people, but they are everywhere. When two solo travellers bump into each other at a temple in Cambodia, it will seem like old friends catching up again.
Solo travel is like the bro code for travellers. We speak our own language and rarely end up solo for long on the road.
Loneliness is a choice. Sure, some days I want to lock myself in my room and chill out by myself. But if I want to make friends all I need to do is step out of my room and be friendly.
Solo travel is not as scary as people make it out to be. Guaranteed, most people who have hang-ups about solo travel, have never actually done it themselves.
Rachel Cunningham is a Superyacht Chef and World Adventurer.
With over 110 countries visited in the past 15 years, Rachel wants to you to come along for the ride! Bring a bottle of rum, and a bikini, oh yeah, and your passport. You could end up losing all three items by the end of this journey!
Round the world Rachel takes you off the beaten track to beaches, bars and restaurants of the unknown!
